Barton and Banner Go To The Jungle Part One
by Strawberryfrog
Summary: Continuation of collaborative stories written by Strawberrywaltz and Lou-deadfroggy. In an attempt to mend Barton and Banner's broken friendship - Fury decides to send the boys on a little camping trip. In the jungle.
1. Chapter 1

Barton And Banner Go To The Jungle

The door to Bruce's lab was fire-proof, bullet-proof and apparently Hulk proof, according to Tony. It was not, however, Natasha-proof.

Bruce tended not to notice things when he was working. He blocked everything else out. Looking up, his train of thought died in its tracks. He hadn't expected to find the redheaded spy suddenly standing only a few feet away and jumped a good foot in the air.

"Natasha, uh hi. Can, I…" he stuttered, taking off his glasses in an attempt to focus on her.

"Fury is asking you to go on a training mission in a week's time. You need to become a trained part of the team as well. Tony underwent similar training, now it's your turn." It wasn't really a request, not in that cold monotone.

Training.

Bruce had managed to get out of combat training on the grounds that he would never have to use it. Tony had begrudgingly done a bit a few months earlier and Natasha and Steve already spent their lives training anyway. The other guy didn't need training and probably wouldn't be a model student either. It felt wrong, deliberately letting him out when Bruce spent his every waking moment keeping him in.

"Not combat." He was now sure that Natasha could read his mind. "You need to learn to act as a scientific advisor to our agents. Most of it will be knowing how to get out of the way in a fight."

He knew that Natasha didn't see him as someone who needed protecting, more as a bomb that really shouldn't be hit or else it would explode. Her simple, almost brutal approach to him was so shockingly different to her partner's.

Thinking about Clint wasn't pleasant. The archer hadn't returned after leaving the Tower with no goodbye the day after their encounter in the elevator. Bruce wasn't sure if he was glad the man was gone or not. The vents were so much more obvious now that he was looking for Hawkeye to come out of one.

… …

Clint had returned to the helicarrier. He figured it was for the best. He wasn't sleeping well. He knew that Bruce didn't want him around and it would be easier on the doctor if they were apart, at least for a little while.

The world hadn't needed the Avenger's team since Alaska, which was nice. Clint's leg was still pretty screwed up and he knew he'd be worthless in a fight.

On the helicarrier Clint focused on training. He was given pills for the pain, but ignored them. He strengthened his leg around the pain. He deserved it for being weak anyway. Okay, now he sounded like Bruce. Except he wasn't Bruce, they were nothing alike. The doctor made that clear.

Pushing thoughts of the doctor away Clint stared down the target and let another arrow fly. Dead centre. At least some things didn't change.

As it turned out, moving back to the helicarrier might have been good for Bruce but not for Clint. His sleeping pattern had actually worsened. Clint napped to keep up appearances of being okay. It fooled everyone on board, except Fury, Hill and Natasha when she visited. It was good not to show weakness in front of the other agents, many of them held grudges for their friends' deaths - for Coulson. Clint had had several encounters with angry groups willing to take it out on him physically.

Clint let them get a few hits in, but showed them quickly that he wasn't going anywhere.

Another arrow flew across the room from Clint's bow, hitting the target with a satisfying thud.

Slow clapping directed Clint's attention towards his audience, Nick Fury.

"It's been a while since I was graced with applause." Clint smirked, mind drifting back to when he used to perform in front of crowds of happy, carefree people. How he always wanted to be one of them. A face in a crowd. That would never happen, but even assassins dreamed.

"I've got an assignment for you," the Director announced, ignoring Clint's comment. "Will you accept it?"

Normally, Clint would want to know the mission, but the man was going stir crazy. "I'll take any action I can get. What's the mission?"

"No mission, just an assignment," Nick said casually, causing Clint to frown.

"I'm on babysitting duty, aren't I?" Clint hated protection detail. It was boring.

"Something like that. I need you to help train a scientist for field work. Make sure he knows how to fight or at least get out of the way if things go south on a mission. He already knows decent survival skills. But just make sure he hasn't missed anything."

"Bruce." Clint guessed, his stomach dropping as his eyes narrowed. "Sir..."

"You already agreed, Barton," Nick reminded his agent with a smug smirk. "You leave in an hour. One of our pilots is going to drop you and Dr Banner in a deserted location. You will be there for a week without communication. Keep him alive and teach him some survival skills."

"So, you're sending Bruce and me camping to make sure we can still work together as a team?"

"Little more dangerous than camping. But if you want to reduce it to that so you understand." Fury rolled his eye and turned away. "I suggest you pack for warm weather."

Grumbling Clint collapsed his bow and gathered up his arrows before heading back to his room.

This sucked.

Here the Hawk went through all this trouble to make things easier on Bruce and the Director goes and screws everything up.

Returning his room, a plain box that looked more like a prison cell then a bedroom, Clint grabbed his smaller bag and tossed it on the bed, checking its contents.

His SHIELD issued room was plainer then the one he had at the tower. It held no personal effects, just his two bags of mission appropriate clothing.

Simplistic, just the way he needed.

Clint eyed the bed for a second. He was exhausted, but he could nap on the plane. He'd actually have to. Plus it would give Bruce time to come to terms with the assignment.

This was going to be one long week.

… …

Bruce was glad, in a way, that the plane had picked Clint up first. It meant he didn't have to make the choice of whether to talk or not. A stiff nod and a "hi" were all that were needed. He sat opposite of Clint. Not quite as far away as possible, but not exactly close either. He then busied himself with rereading the assignment brief.

Location: Unknown.

Duration: A week to ten days.

Climate: Hot.

He was amazed by the details it went in to. Really he knew that nothing else mattered. But scientists liked details.

It wasn't long until he sneaked a glance at Clint. It was like being stuck in the lift all over again, except this time he wasn't going to talk. It wasn't that he didn't want to mend bridges; he just couldn't find a way to undo everything he had done to Clint.

Bruce wished Fury had just left things alone. The director wanted to get the Avengers back together and that wasn't possible if there was such a rift between the two men. He knew how important it was to have the Avengers fully functional. However, the rift didn't need fixing in order for them to cooperate. The other guy was the only one they needed in a fight and he seemed to like Clint no matter what. The other guy didn't change his mind when he decided to like someone, so Clint was safe.

He turned to look out the window at the clouds. Conversation would be too awkward so he didn't try. He hadn't been overjoyed when Natasha had told him Clint was his training partner. Hopefully the archer's talent for staying on subject and focused would come into play.

Bruce hoped wherever they were going wasn't too far, the plane ride was uncomfortable enough and they had only been in the air an hour. He finally gave in and got out his book.

… …

Clint drifted to sleep not long after the second take off. He would need a bit of rest if he was going to survive this training exercise. Even then he wasn't sure if he'd survive. Clint had already decided to cut 'friendship' ties with the Doctor. Well, not that they'd been friends to begin with, according to Bruce during their first argument.

Sleeping ended the way it had been lately. Sweet darkness turned into dreams which ended in nightmares. Coulson's death this time. Except instead of Loki he was the one who stabbed his handler with the staff. Betrayed and dying Coulson looked up at Clint and asked why.

Eyes snapped open as the assassin stifled a gasp. A few hours had passed by, for that he was grateful, more than likely they'd be landing soon. Without a glance towards Bruce, who had probably noticed his abrupt break from sleep, Clint stood and made his way to the cockpit. Not for the first time he wished he were the one flying.

He nodded to the pilot who glared back. Apparently this SHIELD agent was one of his many anti fans.

"You shouldn't be up here, agent," the pilot growled, thankfully not loud enough for Bruce to overhear in the back. Clint's heart dropped a bit. Briefly he went over the names of those he killed while under Loki's control, wondering which caused the anger within the man.

"Just wanted an update." Clint didn't back down.

"Thirty minutes. Now get the fuck out," the pilot grumbled without looking at the archer.

Happily Clint left the cold atmosphere only to return to another chilly space.

Settling back down Clint picked up his brief and pretended to read it, peacefully ignoring Bruce. Once they landed Clint would offer instructions and they'd start this unbelievably long training session.

People sucked.

… …

Bruce watched as Clint asked for an ETA and was told to leave the cockpit. He was surprised at the apparent crack in SHIELD's seemingly impregnable wall of cool efficient agents. Apparently there were still some hard feelings towards Clint. Some part of him wanted to yell at the pilot for making the archer's life harder. Of course the rest (minus the other guy) of him kept him sitting still, ignoring the situation.

Thirty minutes passed the same way most of the journey had. Bruce felt his stomach lurch as the plane was brought down to a very bumpy stop. Clint was the better pilot he decided; his touchdown in Alaska had been perfectly gentle.

Picking up his bag he stood up, ready to endure the next week of slow torture. He tried to recall the reason he had agreed to it before realizing that one way or another Natasha always got what she had been told to get. Be it at gun point or not.

A blast of humid air hit him as the door opened.

"Jungle, hot, right," he muttered then remembered with a wince that he had said a very similar thing as he stepped of the plane in Alaska. This time Clint wasn't likely to chuckle.

… …

Silently, Clint slung his quiver across his back, grabbed his bag and his bow and headed out of the Quinjet and into the jungle. Bruce spoke for the second time since this new disaster started. If Clint's memory served him right they were up to a total of four words.

As soon as they were both clear, the Quinjet took off, ditching them in the wilderness.

Resisting a groan Clint slipped into his professional mask, the one he used when he needed to be civil.

"Okay, Doctor," Clint started, avoiding using Bruce's first name, since first names were for friends, not colleagues. "We have roughly three hours of light left." Clint glanced up at the sky to check the position of the sun. They were probably somewhere across the world from where they started. Quinjets were faster than a typical plane. He adjusted his watch to match up with the current time.

"We should probably find a good place to set up camp. We'll need a fortified area with a water source. Let's start walking."

… …

Without a word Bruce followed, glancing downwards at the plants growing along the path Clint was making. He recognized a few, some basic medicines and such just in case. It was unlikely, but their list of outings had a bloody streak running down the middle. Mostly with Clint's blood.

It was hot and humid but didn't smell like the Amazon. Bruce had spent enough time in South America to know when he wasn't there. His guess was Southeast Asia; Borneo, Malaysia or Indonesia. The difference between how Clint had learnt to survive and how he had was that Clint had been trained to look for certain things, water and shelter, whereas Bruce had usually stumbled blindly across lifesaving resources or wandered into a village by accident. Once he had found water, however, he tended to stick near it or follow it for as long as possible.

A stream wasn't far away, clear fresh water bounced over soft edged rocks down the hill they had just climbed. He didn't know how defensible the area was, that was Clint's department.

… …

Silently Clint looked around and noted a few things. The stream was out in the open, so it wasn't a defensible location. But the rocks were growing larger towards the north. If they headed that way he was fairly sure they'd come across a better location. With a wave Barton led the way.

His leg was stronger, yes, but the pain was still there. Clint didn't want to screw his new muscles up before he was officially cleared for actual missions, so he would make sure they took it easy during their stay in hell's jungle. Or maybe the jungle wasn't hell, Clint wasn't sure.

A good two mile walk down the river they stumbled upon the perfect place. The river curved in to a horseshoe shape right in front of a cliff with an overhanging edge, forming an open cave. It would protect their six. Plus it gave Clint something to climb up on later to get away from Bruce for a while.

"Here should be good," Clint announced, keeping it simple as he moved across the river and dropped his bag down.

Taking in a calming breath he turned back to the other Avenger. "I'll be straight with you, Doctor. I know you have a good deal of survival experience, so I'm not going to bore you with the basics. Honestly I don't see you necessarily needing to know this stuff in the near future either. However, I will complete my mission as Fury has assigned it to me."

Clint had been given a list of specific lessens to go over during the duration of their stay. It wasn't overly long, which left a lot of free time. A lot of silent torture, according to how quiet the doctor was being.

It was probably for the best, thinking back to the elevator incident. With a quiet sigh Clint looked back at Bruce.

"I'm going to gather some firewood and scout the area. If you could build a fire pit, that would be good." He adjusted his quiver on his back and gripped his bow before heading off into the jungle.

Clint wasn't worried about leaving the Doctor alone, if anything happened, Bruce would Hulk-out and smash whatever attacked him.

Honestly, this whole trip was a glorious waste of time.

But while they were out there Clint would do as told. Maybe he'd start on self-defense techniques when he got back. Hand to hand training would probably take the longest anyway. Bruce wasn't exactly the fighting type.

… …

Bruce watched as Clint limped off. He was beginning to see the whole trip as a waste of time and undoubtedly Fury was aware that he didn't need to learn how to start a fire. By the way Clint was behaving any hope the director had of full scale reconciliation was badly misplaced.

He set about building the small pit, readying it for when Clint came back. He had to admit, he hadn't built a proper cooking fire in a long time. He hadn't stayed in one place long enough to need more than a few hours' worth of warmth. Nonetheless it didn't take him long. That left him with some time to think before Clint came back. He really only had two options: spend the week in silence with nothing more than the mandatory comments and instructions. Or try to apologize. Judging by how well his efforts in the elevator had been received, the first option was the most feasible.

Bruce wondered what else was on Clint's list of required lessons. Maybe he would try and teach him how to skin a rabbit or pitch a tent. That being said; they didn't have a tent. Not that Bruce had ever actually slept in a tent, so he didn't know how to pitch one.

If things had been the same as before Alaska, he would have told Clint and joked about it like he had when flying the plane. He expected more of a lesson in diplomatic silence than a boy scout outing. Maybe, if he werelucky Clint would try to teach him some fight moves and the archer would land enough punches to make up for the pain Bruce had caused him. It would take more than just a few punches though.

Bruce began to poke around the cave, clearing bits of debris away so that there was slightly more room inside. He checked for any visible signs of insects, snakes or other unwanted bedfellows. He still hadn't quite worked out where they were so any spiders could be poisonous and most plants probably would be too. The cave was small, with barely enough room for them both to lie down in and not touch. It would have been cozy, under any other circumstances.

He looked up at the trees, searching for birds or any other source of food. He had, of course, been told not to bring any rations. That, he guessed, would be classified as cheating, with the exception of a few packets of dried fruit and mint cake.

… …

Clint took his sweet time gathering firewood and scouting the area. He didn't go far, just far enough to be safe. There was an abundance of small wildlife, but not much big game. No signs of predators, which was a bit odd. Or maybe it wasn't, this could be a SHIELD sanctified training ground, so the bigger animals avoided the area because of continuous human activity.

Returning to 'camp' armed with an armful of decent sized firewood Clint dropped his load and eyed what Bruce had done to the camp approvingly. Once again reminded on how pointless this whole 'vacation' was. Damn Fury and his one eye.

"You like fish, don't you doctor?" Clint asked casually, drawing two arrows from his bow and moving closer to the river. It was shallow in some places, but deeper in others. Decent sized fish swam between the rocks, dodging the light current. He slipped both arrows onto his bow string and drew back for tension. He aimed and fired, spearing two on the larger fish in sight.

Reaching into the cool water Clint pulled the fish free and moved over to 'camp' with a smirk shot at Bruce.

"I'll build a fire, you know how to clean - " Clint stopped midsentence and glanced towards the jungle just beyond the river. His eyes narrowed carefully as he searched the green. There had been no sound, which drew his attention. The birds had stopped singing in the distance, something big was moving through the area. How big, he wasn't sure; it was too quiet to be massive, which left two options. A stealth predator like a tiger or panther. Or a human.

Freeing his arrows from his catch he handed the fish off to Bruce and silently moved towards the river's edge, drawing his bow up in defense.

"Don't shoot!" a frightened voice called from the shadows. "I'm just a biologist!"

7 Not sure of the point of this statement. What makes him think it isn't hell? What would be the alternative?


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

… …

"Come out slowly." Clint's eyes narrowed towards the woman's outline. He saw her before the she spoke. It was perhaps the only reason the stranger spoke to begin with.

The girl emerged. She was young, maybe late twenties, early thirties. Pale, but healthy looking. Skinny, dressed in clothes that were just a tad too big on her. Her hair was long and dark, pulled back into a sharp pony tail, her bangs dangling just above her eyes.

She looked innocent, like Bruce.

Clint checked her over for weapons and didn't see any so he dropped his stance and lowered his bow, not just putting his arrow away though. "What are you doing out here, miss?"

"I-I'm a researcher in genetics. I was just going for a walk and heard voices. There are no villages for miles, so I was curious. I-I'm so sorry! I didn't expect you to see or hear me!"

"Yeah well, I have good eyesight." Clint eyed her suspiciously. A girl walking out in the jungle alone just didn't feel right. "Where is your team?"

"I'm alone," the girl answered after a beat, hesitant to tell two strangers that she was vulnerable, but unable to lie efficiently. "You're a SHIELD agent?" she asked curiously, with a slight edge of hope. As if a SHIELD agent would be less frightening to meet in the jungle.

Clint had forgotten he was wearing a SHIELD issued shirt. But how did she know about SHIELD?

"My father worked for SHIELD," she explained as if reading Clint's mind. Her eyes drifted over to Bruce curiously.

… …

Bruce hadn't heard the girl approach; his only clue to their company was Clint's reaction.

He had been surprised when Clint began an almost normal conversation about the fish, seeming slightly more at ease than before until the archer drew his bow without warning. He nearly did a double take when a soft Scottish voice called out.

"Don't shoot, I'm a biologist," was not something he expected to hear.

She wasn't a local, that was obvious. He didn't think she looked much like a threat but then again, neither did Natasha when she was being charming. Bruce guessed that having a father in SHIELD made her presence a bit more explainable. Things like that sort of ran in the family. He didn't fail to notice the past tense that she used when describing her father. Somehow, getting a pension from SHIELD wasn't something he could picture easily.

She looked over at him questioningly. He wasn't sure what to say, Clint knew more about who else would be in the area and why.

Except that, looking at Clint, he didn't seem like he did this time.

Bruce glanced around, knowing that there was something wrong. Fury wouldn't have put them there if he had known about other people in the vicinity, surely?

Maybe, as was now apparently his habit, he would be better off saying nothing. He didn't like relying on Clint to get him out of situations though. He took a breath to start asking who she was.

He gave one last hesitation in case Clint had something better to say.

… …

Clint's mind was racing with the new information. There was too much going on that didn't add up.

Fury wanted him and Bruce to be alone; he wouldn't have sent them there if he knew that there were people around. The girl was unarmed and dressed as a civilian, but she walked like a trained agent, silent and deadly.

Still, it would be like Fury to leave out information for a mission. But not a mission like this. Clint was thrown, but he kept it from his expression. Carefully, he lowered his weapon further.

"We were not made aware that there was an asset in the area. What's your designation?"

"Oh," The girl's eyes widened, "I'm not a part of SHIELD." She shook her head furiously. "My father died about ten years ago. I'm working out here on my own, researching some theories and studying new plant life. I've never had problems. The locals live far enough away that I barely see them." She smiled. "I'm Doctor Alice Beckett, by the way." She smiled a very disarming smile, but it did nothing to calm Clint's nerves.

The girl's silver eyes moved from Clint over to Bruce. "You aren't from SHIELD," she commented lightly. "You don't carry yourself like a soldier. Are you out here for science as well?"

Clint unconsciously moved closer to Bruce, as if he needed protecting from the young girl, who was probably a hundred pounds soaking wet.

… …

Bruce resisted the urge to glare at Clint. Sure, people underestimated girls but really? Something didn't wash with her story though. She wasn't old enough to be out of college for ten years and nobody went into the jungle for research without a degree or more. As picturesque as the idea was, no one actually went off into the jungle to research plants. Animals, yes (see Jane Goodall) but not plants. Beckett didn't ring a bell, although botany wasn't his strong point.

She was a little bit too curious, too questioning to be trustworthy. Yet, she didn't seem a threat. She did, however, have a sweet smile.

"No," he replied simply, not clarifying if that was in response to her question about science or him being from SHIELD. It was obvious he wasn't a soldier; he didn't react like one despite him being nearly the right build. Plus, he was in his usual slacks and a shirt instead of flexible high-tech materials that hugged every muscle like a second skin.

It looked like Fury's plan of them apologizing to each other in complete isolation for a week had gone out the window. At least he wouldn't have to spend it in silence.

… …

Clint glanced back at Bruce when he spoke a one word answer and then fixed his eyes back on the girl who looked a bit taken aback. Her friendly nature changed a bit to nervousness.

"Well, I'm sorry for interrupting," she apologized, her smile still 'sweet' but a bit shaky. Clint realized they were probably the first humans she'd seen in a while. In their defense though, while they were being rude, she was somewhat of a threat. "I'll leave you two to it then," Alice offered, taking a careful step back towards the safety of the jungle. "If you need anything my cabin isn't far from here, just over that ridge about a mile." She pointed to the West.

Clint nodded but remained silent. He would have to scope out the place later that night, in order to determine her threat level for sure. Once the girl was gone, Barton glanced back to Bruce and moved towards the fire pit.

"Let's eat first, then I'll teach you how to stake out a possible threat," Clint offered with mocked enthusiasm.

… …

Bruce very nearly rolled his eyes before remembering that Clint could see him. He looked down at the two fish in his hands.

"Do you have a small knife?" he asked. Of course Clint had one but just asking for it would be a bit rude. He didn't really know what sort of fish he was holding but he knew how to clean them.

Staking out Alice's lab wasn't his idea of fun but he was curious. There was something wrong here and Clint would be able to see what it was.

"How do you like your fish?" he asked with the smallest hint of humour. Not that he had much to work with and he wasn't a Cordon Bleu anyway. Basically it was big fish pieces or small fish pieces, the choice was Clint's.

… …

Clint moved towards the fire pit but turned back when Bruce asked for a knife; he pulled the one free from his boot sheath and handed it to the scientist.

"Don't cut yourself." He smirked before lowering himself down and arranging the wood over the kindle Bruce had already supplied for the pit.

His leg protested, but he hid the discomfort expertly and focused on his task. He glanced over at Bruce when the physicist asked how he liked his fish.

"Raw and encased in rice and seaweed," he joked back. He and Natasha had a thing for Sushi. The expensive kind. "But considering we lack the proper ingredients cooked and gut free is good."

Using two pieces of flint he'd found, Clint struck them together and caused a spark to catch the kindle. He carefully coaxed the fire to life before sitting back and stretching out his leg.

His mind was focused on Alice. He wanted to go check out her cabin now and see if she was telling the truth about being alone. The girl seemed alone. The way she approached two men in the jungle unarmed was odd, unless she was lonely. Loneliness drove people to do things that weren't necessarily safe. He knew from experience.

… …

Bruce hesitated before he was sure that Clint was joking about the cutting bit. Of course the archer hadn't been on the helicarrier when he had had his little outburst in front of Fury.

"Sorry but sushi isn't my signature dish. Gut free, however is my specialty." He quipped. He proceeded to gut the fish, piling the remains to be buried later. Fish guts were an unpleasant side effect. He picked up a stick, skewered a fish and handed it to Clint.

"Gut free, as requested." He held out his own to toast over the fire. "Anyone bring marshmallows?" It was awkward, the light banter between them, but it was better than silence.

He wondered how often Alice saw people, holed up in a cabin miles away from anyone. She had apparently chosen that. He didn't think he would be able to live cut off from the world if he didn't have the other guy hanging over him. Being away from people was a choice he made for others, not one he would ever have made for himself. It was odd the think that once, he had been a social person.

… ….

Clint raised an eyebrow at Bruce at the marshmallow comment and took the offered fish on a stick. He remained silent for a second, contemplating Bruce's attitude. The man made a point to be clear he wanted distance between them, yet here he was joking around. Maybe it was a defense mechanism. Clint was still sure the man didn't want them to be friends. This time Clint wouldn't fall for the act.

But he wasn't one to be rude either.

"Thanks," he offered kindly before falling quiet, propping his stick and fish over the fire with two different logs he'd gathered, one to hold the end in place and the other to hold the fish over the fire. Now he just had to wait to turn it after one side was cooked.

"Sorry, SHIELD's kitchen doesn't keep marshmallows in stock." He shrugged a shoulder. The food at SHIELD was actually pretty terrible. Healthy with a side of disgusting. Clint missed Tony's well stocked kitchen.

"So." Clint cleared his throat, to get back to business. "Fury wants me to teach you a few things about self-defense too."

… …

Bruce looked up in surprise. Was Fury nuts? The answer, almost undoubtedly was yes.

"Self-defense? Fury wants you to start punching me? I don't think that's a good plan," he said softly. Sure he had hit back at the jerk outside the bar but he had been lucky and fought hard for control. Hard enough to have a debilitating headache for a week and not been able to leave his bed or have the lights on. Self-defense wasn't something he had thought he would need, but he quite liked the idea of not having to let the other guy out just to save his skin.

"Okay, if you're sure you want to. On one condition. If I say we stop, we back away before you get hurt. You may be able to floor me with both hands tied behind your back but I don't want the other guy thinking you're a punching bag." He was pretty sure he could judge exactly how close he was to losing control but it was still a stupidly dangerous thing to suggest.

He was angry at himself and the other guy had a habit of taking that out on things nearby. Breakable things.

… …

Clint snorted.

"No, I'm not just going to start punching you. That isn't how I teach scientists, Doctor." Not that Clint had taught someone who wasn't an agent for a while, it didn't mean he hadn't. "But I agree with Fury that you should learn how to defend yourself without the Hulk. Someday, somehow you might not have the big guy to fall back on and you'll be left vulnerable."

It might be cruel or uplifting for Bruce to hear that, Clint wasn't sure. All he knew was that it was the truth. Someone somewhere might come up with a way to keep Bruce from hulking out and finish the doctor off. It wasn't something Clint wanted to happen, whether they were friends or not. Clint didn't want his teammate...former teammate to die.

"But we can stop whenever you need a break," Clint promised. Although he wasn't thrilled Bruce was still bad talking his other half. Clint liked the Hulk, and the Hulk liked him. At least as far as he knew. The big guy had gone out of his way to save the archer's life in Alaska.

Turning his fish, Clint glanced off to where Alice walked off to. "So what was your read on our new neighbour, Doctor?" he asked conversationally.

… …

The thought that someone could find a way to get rid of the other guy was at the same time a comforting thought and a knife in the belly. Bruce wanted it so badly; he spent every minute in his lab back at the tower searching for a way. Tony side-tracked him occasionally but that was his main focus; getting rid of the other guy. That was all he was trying to do. Afterwards he could go back to trying to solve the world's problems through science, helping Tony on projects and such.

He left his more melancholy thoughts and focused on what Clint said next. Alice.

"There's something fishy about her." He scrunched up his face as he realized what he had just said. "That was not intentional. She seems pretty harmless, but then, so do I." He smiled wryly. "I guess there are a few too many odd things for us to simply believe her." He didn't add that she was sweet and a bit too pretty to be stuck out in the wild on her own. He mentally frowned at the thought. Where had that come from?

… …

"I'm surprised Fury didn't know she was here," Clint added. "He would have informed me if there were civilians in the area, and he didn't."

The fish was cooked now, so Clint started to eat bits of it. He honestly wasn't overly hungry. Lack of proper sleep did that to a person. He ate enough for show and threw the rest in the fire. "When you're ready, we'll take a walk." Clint said, moving to his bag and pulling out a few things. He also adjusted his quiver on his back and checked the tension of his bow string.

Once Bruce was ready, Clint handed him a loaded gun in a holster and waited for the doctor to strap the weapon on, giving him direction when he needed it. It was Clint's back holster, one of his favourites, so he hoped that the Hulk didn't come out to play.

"We'll need to tread quietly so I'm going to teach you to walk like a ninja3. Be excited," Clint deadpanned before starting with his instructions. "First you need to be aware of your path and where you're stepping. Avoid stepping on large sticks and tripping over rocks. Walk on the balls of your feet, don't put down your heels unless you need a balance check or you stop."

With a wave Clint led the way into the jungle, moving silently through the brush. By the time they came upon Alice's cabin Bruce had gotten the hang of stealth walking. They hid in the bushes on top of a hill overlooking the cabin silently.

Trained eyes scanned the area. There was no overly high tech security system, no trip wires, and no cameras. Carefully Clint turned his gaze back to the cabin and watched the window, his body as still as a statue.

His muscles tensed and his focus zeroed in on Alice as she passed by a window. From where they were they had a decent view inside. The cabin was a good size. A kitchen was in view. Currently, the girl was watching a coffee pot dribble out a cup of caffeine.

Past the kitchen was what looked like a lab. Samples of plants and scientific equipment were placed everywhere. On the outside looking in it looked like Alice's backstory checked out. She was a scientist working alone...wherever they were, in the middle of the jungle, alone.

But why?

She was young. Younger then Bruce or Tony, yet she was titled a Doctor. "You know more about science then me, what do you think she's doing with the lab? Or can you tell from here?" Clint whispered, refocusing on Bruce for a moment.

… …

Bruce squinted through his glasses, trying to make out the room beyond the windows. It was slightly blurry and he wished he had Clint's eyesight.

"I can't see enough to be sure, but it looks like she's studying plant DNA," he answered slowly. "That's a pretty powerful microscope. Can you see the trademark on the side? It looks like one of Tony's. If that's the case then she's lying, it's only been in production for a year or so. It's also a bit too cumbersome for her to lag all the way here. There must be a road or airstrip nearby that can hold something a bit more conventional than what we came in."

He looked over the rest of the cabin. It was reasonably big spacious, the upper floor jutted over the bottom one to form a porch. He made a mental note to tell Alice that she had a missing roof tile. A slightly tamed area that served as a garden was dotted with a haphazard allotment of plants and a scrawny goat bleated for no apparent reason.

Alice had disappeared now into the depths of the house beyond their sight. Apart from the microscope, nothing seemed amiss.

"Everything else looks fine, unless you can see something I can't." Bruce took off his glasses, his eyes tired from squinting. He really needed to get them checked; he felt it was time for a new prescription.

… …

Clint adjusted his eyes back towards the cabin and answered. "Not one of Stark's, it looks like an older machine too," he supplied the answer easily.

The archer frowned but accepted that so far the girl's story panned out so far.

"Let's head back. I'll teach you some defensive moves before you go to sleep" he casually announced that he wasn't sleeping, but he knew he could wave it off with a simple 'I'm taking first watch' type of deal.

Carefully Clint edged back from the hill and then got to his feet. His leg felt a bit stiff from the position it had been, but it warmed up and Clint was able to hide his limp fairly well.

Back at camp, Clint eyed their stuff to make sure nothing was missing and walked over to the river to splash some water on his face before turning back to Bruce.

"Okay, Doctor." He stood and walked over to Banner. "Try to hit me," Clint said, knowing he could easily dodge or block Bruce without worry that the man would get a hit in. Tony still couldn't manage to get a hit in and they'd been sparring together for a long while.

… …

Bruce rolled his eyes and bent his knees, ready to start. He knew that his chances of actually landing a hit on Clint were so remote he wasn't even worried about hurting him. That didn't stop him trying.

His first punch was a bit pathetic, he had to admit. The second hit Clint's arm with a bit more force but still fell aside harmlessly.

"Any hints or am I just meant to hit you until you take pity on me and pretend I managed to land one?" he asked lightly.

He was only now realizing how lucky he had been that night outside the bar. He really had no idea what he was doing. He wasn't naturally strong, more hardy than athletic. It had been more blind chance than any skill that had kept the thug from beating him blue.

"Hitting you hurts, you're like a concrete wall," he grumbled with a small smile, trying to break the ice slightly.

… …

Clint moved out of the way of another hit as his lips twitched into a smile/smirk.

"First I want to see what you know, and aside from basic aim, it's apparent you don't know much." Gently he caught Bruce's hand mid-air to stop it from hitting his nose. "For one, you keep aiming for the same general area, switch it up, and keep your enemy guessing. Don't give them any advantages."

They continued for a while, until Bruce seemed to be getting a bit more comfortable with the idea of hitting someone and then Clint called it a night.

"Alright, try and get some sleep. We'll work on tracking tomorrow."

… …

Bruce nodded and let Clint take a step past him before swinging again. He landed his fist gently on the archer's back, not actually trying to hurt him.

"Like that?" he asked, making sure that Clint could see his smile to show that it wasn't meant as a threat.

The hardest part hadn't been landing the punches on Clint, that was impossible. It was trying to hurt someone. It wasn't natural for Bruce. Still, he guessed hitting someone would hurt less than the other guy hitting them.

He unrolled the paper thin sleeping bag Natasha had given him and began to take off his shoes.

"Let's hope the bed bugs don't bite."

… …

Clint resisted his typical reflex to someone trying to punch him when he wasn't expecting it and locked up his muscles. His mouth twitched into a satisfied smile, at last Bruce was learning, even if it nearly got them both killed.

"Yeah, something like that," he agreed then watched carefully as Bruce snuggled down.

Once he was sure the scientist was out Clint moved back through the jungle, back to Alice's cabin. The lights were on still, she had a generator outside that supplied electricity. He wanted to know who she worked for; she wasn't out here working alone.

Even if her father worked for SHIELD, Clint knew the girl wouldn't have this much money to work alone. Although, there had been nothing said about the mother, so that was always a possibility.

When Clint was satisfied nothing had changed in the threat level he returned to Bruce silently and watched over the man. The night stretched on and Clint dozed in short cat naps, like he had been doing lately to avoid nightmares and passing out from sleep deprivation.

The sun rose and Clint stretched his muscles, specifically those in his leg and moved to wake Bruce.

… …

Bruce felt the hand on his shoulder and snapped his eyes open. He relaxed when he saw Clint's face. Realizing that the archer most probably hadn't slept, opting to keep watch instead, he stifled the yawn that came automatically.

He didn't mention it though, Clint knew better than to let himself get too tired when on a mission.

"Morning. So what's the timetable today, prof?" he asked, splashing his face with water from the stream. He was starting to enjoy the trip now; it was no longer as incredibly awkward as before. Still, it was like walking on ice and one wrong world could break the whole thing.

By tracking, he wondered if Clint had meant Alice. It felt like it would be an odd invasion of the girl's privacy if they just randomly started watching her. Not that he wasn't curious; he'd just prefer meeting her properly.

… …

"No time table, I don't want -" Clint's voice trailed off. He was about to say 'to stress you out' but realized immediately that Bruce would take that the wrong way. "I don't want to put a timeline on learning. This isn't a classroom. At least, not a normal classroom." Clint shrugged, not looking the doctor in the eye for a moment.

"What we're going to do is go out and trail after something, I'm going to teach you a few tips on finding trails and hiding trails and then we're going to play an old fashion game called Hide and Seek. You're going to hide, and I'm going to try and find you. Sound good?"

Clint knew if they switched it around and Bruce was trying to find him they'd be out wandering around in the jungle for the entire day.

"We'll take a break to eat later," he promised.

For now the SHIELD agent had decided to avoid Alice at all costs. She was an annoyance, but so far not a threat.

… …

Hiding, well that was something he could do. But there was no way he was comfortable with being once again tracked down. Clint's mind worked in some odd ways; he imagined causes for stress where there were none and yet walked straight into an even worse scenario.

Bruce didn't say anything though; the man was doing his best.

"Sounds good," he answered with a cheerful smile. "Better start with elephants, even I could find those." That said he hadn't seen any elephants so finding some may be a bit harder. Not that he expected Clint to take him up on that, the man could take a joke.

… …

Clint smirked, but didn't laugh at the doctor's comment.

"We'll see what we can find," he offered lightly.

They ended up tracking small animals. Clint spent a good amount of time explaining dummy trails and how to hide tracks and avoid leaving signs of being in an area. He was thorough in his explanations and was confident Bruce had a good foundation when they stopped.

"Okay, now for the hide and seek portion of the day." Barton clapped his hands together and motioned for Bruce to go off into the jungle. "I'll give you a fifteen minute head start."

… …

Bruce took a second to look around then walked off in a random direction, keeping as quiet as he could. He doubled back creating a fair amount of mess before retracing his steps and continuing in his original direction. Once he was out of Clint's earshot he broke into a steady run, following a game trail.

Clint would find him, of course. Then again Bruce was very good at running and even better at disappearing altogether. They had forgotten to set a perimeter in which they would stay. Bruce decided not to go too far, he did want to be relatively near camp when it was time to head back.

The jungle was so thick that he had to move slowly, pulling branches back to hide his trail as he went. He couldn't see more than a few feet in front of him.

Slowly his old mind-set came back.

He was being hunted.

No, he thought, it's just a game.

He was running, but they had trucks, guns, dogs.

It's just Clint.

They wanted him in a cage, chained up.

He began to panic, looking for a break in the trees.

The cabin loomed up ahead, he was there before he registered heading towards it. Panting, he stopped by the wall to catch his breath. Maybe when Clint found him he would explain how it hadn't been such a good idea. He mentally kicked himself for letting go of his emotions that easily. Luckily, there was no one around to see.

He lifted his head and let out an inaudible groan.

There was.

… …


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

… …

Clint had no idea about Bruce's inner fears. As an agent and a sniper, Clint was well used to being hunted and having to hide in order to survive. It was second nature; not something to be feared but something to learn and hold onto. Knowledge that was imperative for an agent. Unaware of the other man's fears Clint stretched and counted in his mind, waiting for the appropriate time to pass before following after and eventually finding Bruce.

Alice hadn't slept well the night before, knowing there were strangers in the area. Sure, she was sure that they weren't intent on harming her. Though she was pretty sure the agent wasn't pleased with her presence. He was stronger than the other, clearly the one in charge.

It was the other man who interested her. He was quiet, shy almost. She liked shy guys, they interested her. Still he showed no fear, so something about him must be dangerous, though outward appearances didn't scream the answer she was looking for.

Alice was at the river, armed with a bag of samples. Today she was wearing a tank top, tan cargo pants and a pair of hiking boots. She was also armed with a knife, though the knife was more used for collecting samples.

She bent over, dipping her thin fingers into the cool water, enjoying the feeling. She wanted to go for a swim, but the nearest lake was a decent hike away. Not something she liked to do on a whim.

Standing she turned, hearing something coming through the jungle.

For a moment she just stared, unaccustomed to being around other people. "Hello," She offered kindly. "Are you running from someone?" she asked, glancing over his shoulder to see if his companion would make an appearance.

… …

Bruce straightened up, trying to get back some sort of dignity.

"Uh, no. Training exercise. He's meant to be tracking me through the jungle," he panted slightly, and vaguely motioned in Clint's general direction. He didn't want to say he was hiding or running from his companion. That would sound a bit pathetic.

He really did need to find a place to hide though, or else Clint would appear in a dishearteningly short amount of time. Maybe there was somewhere around the cabin, just to confuse his trail with Alice's tracks.

He wasn't going to ask her though. Since when did he get so awkward around someone he hadn't just argued with? Instead he just looked around for somewhere to hide.

… …

Alice smiled shyly watching the man searching the area, like a small animal trying to outsmart a predator. From what she observed, she thought the comparison was fitting.

She felt for the man, clearly not a Shield Agent. He shouldn't be out in the jungle with the soldier boy.

"Did he give you rules?" She asked curiously and carried on when he shook his head. "I mean, if you want to make it a little bit interesting for him, you could hide in my cabin. I was heading back to my lab anyway."

She pointed in the general direction of her cabin with her thumb over her shoulder.

...

Bruce hesitated. He was still wary of Alice and it really didn't seem fair on Clint. Then again, he was meant to use whatever resources presented themselves, right? Besides, it wasn't exactly fair on him either, Clint was trained after all.

"Well, not rules exactly." Bruce was very good at talking himself into things he already wanted to do. Alice seemed nice and didn't know what he was. That would be refreshing, to once again talk to someone who wouldn't treat him like a bomb about to go off.

"What sort of work do you do?" he asked as he followed her back towards the building. He didn't know much about botany. It was the human body he was interested in, not plants. Still, he knew a bit about herbal remedies and such. Not enough to make interesting conversation though. Hopefully, Alice was interested in more than one field.

Hopefully? Why did he hope that? Bruce shook his head and carried on walking with her.

...

Alice smiled and led the way, keeping a light, casual pace. She was excited to be around someone else, she missed human companionship.

"I'm working on my thesis, trying to find components in plant DNA and other animals out here that might hold the key to cure certain illnesses. Cancer, radiation poisoning, certain nervous system disorders, genetic disorders. It's broad research; I'm funded by several groups around the world."

...

Bruce paused when he heard the word radiation. He didn't let Alice see his brief expression of surprise. He had heard, of course of cancer curing diets, plants with unusual properties that stopped your cells from mutating. He hadn't looked into it that much, preferring chemicals and later, physics.

"Just you out here with no team? No lackey to go and get coffee?" he asked with a small grin. It was slightly odd, her being out in the middle of nowhere without at least a research partner or assistant. Even loner scientists didn't actually work alone. All around her cabin grew carefully tended plants, specimens she was testing. The goat greeted them loudly. Bugger, he thought, Clint would know someone had disturbed it.

...

"Yep," Alice smiled. "Not many people like such boring work. I've had a few college internship students work with me, but they never lasted long." She shrugged her shoulder. "I prefer working alone anyway, but I don't mind company." She smiled at her companion brightly.

She glanced away once they reached her cabin and Alice petted her goat's head with her gloved hand. "I actually can't be in a crowded area." she admitted. "I get really bad headaches when too many people are around." Her eyes dropped to the goat's gaze.

Alice thought of going further, explaining about the genetics testing she had been a part of. The same testing that gave her a very unusual ability, one she fought hard not to use because of the terrible side effects. She had found that if she didn't use her ability, she could keep the...side effects...from harming other people.

It was also another reason why she was out in the middle of nowhere, alone, still funded by those who originally hired her.

...

Bruce could sympathize with not liking crowded spaces, albeit for something other than headaches.

"I'm Bruce, by the way," he said and held out a hand to shake. He realized that he hadn't actually introduced himself and regretted being rude the night before. He had become too cautious over the years, too ready to bolt at the slightest hint of danger. Being rude, whilst not something he ever tried to do on purpose, had not really been one of his major concerns. Maybe he should get back into the habit.

People still shook hands, right?

Now, he sounded like Steve.

… …

Alice straightened as the man, now introduced as Bruce, reached out his hand. For a moment, she couldn't help but look terrified, like he had pointed a gun at her or some other weapon. She didn't want to be rude, or mean, or hurtful, but she certainly didn't want to...

"I'm sorry, I-I don't shake hands. I have a medical condition." She showcased her leather gloves. Her eyes shifted to the left as she spoke her half lie. Then she closed her eyes, ashamed. Alice didn't want to lie and Bruce seemed like a nice guy. She also didn't want to come out and say that she was...different. He would be afraid, or be disgusted, possibly try to hurt her.

No, Bruce Banner wouldn't harm her. Not unless...

In her mind, Alice saw green.

"I-I know ya." She blinked, looking Bruce Banner in the eyes, her fear sliding away. "You, you're an Avenger. Bruce Banner, you're the Hulk." She shook her head and took a step back. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have looked, but I couldn't help it. Sometimes it just happens." Alice touched her head and closed her eyes, they snapped open and she glanced off into the jungle.

A few moments later Clint silently made his appearance.

"Clever." Clint told Bruce, glancing from his teammate to their resident stranger. "But not clever enough. What did I miss?"

...

Bruce stared at her. Questions buzzed around his head.

"How do you know that?" he asked, a bit harsher than he intended. Unconsciously he moved closer to Clint, the only familiar presence.

There was nothing to link him to the Hulk. No announcements, like Tony, no files or news reports. His name had been kept out of the original coverage of the accident and later the Harlem incident. General Ross hadn't wanted any publicity for him; he had preferred to hunt down a nobody quietly.

He couldn't understand how Alice could know. What had she not meant to look at?

He let his hand drop awkwardly. He should have stayed hiding in the jungle.

...

Clint was completely lost. He had stumbled across the situation a little too late to know what was really going on. But clearly something had happened and both Alice and Bruce felt threatened, it bled from their eyes. Alice's especially. She had a look of being cornered.

Alice locked her eyes on Clint for a moment before drawing them back to Bruce, one hand clutching the side of her head.

"I'm sorry, I'm just not used to being aroun' people. It's hard to control." Close to tears the girl inched towards her door, dropped her eyes to the floor and apologized one final time before ducking into the safety of her cabin and disappearing from sight.

"What the hell happened?" Clint asked bluntly after a few minutes passed by with no movement.

...

"I don't know. She, somehow she knew who I was. I just said Bruce but she knew..." He trailed off, lost in thought.

"There's something wrong. She said hard to control it. Control what?" He knew that speech, the mumbled apologies. It was as if someone had played back a tape of him apologizing.

"Clint, she told me she does research into generic disorders and radiation poisoning. I don't think my team was the only one Ross had working on human enhancement. There were bound to be others, ones in Europe too. You don't think..."

It was impossible. Then again, so was him being alive. He couldn't let himself believe that there was someone similar to him.

He shook his head and turned to Clint, hoping that somehow the archer would have an idea of what the hell to do.

Clint listened to Bruce, still a little lost. Someone who knew stuff that they shouldn't know, it sounded like something that was beyond Clint's pay grade. Barton frowned, Bruce seemed to understand something about the situation that the archer clearly didn't.

The girl was no threat; that much Clint was sure of. She might be insane, or lonely, maybe a bit anti-social, but he knew threats, and she currently wasn't one.

His ears perked up when Bruce started talking about experiments. "You're saying you think she was involved in some sort of research like the Hulk? She's a Hulk?"

Clint tipped his head, contemplating the idea. The girl did have several 'Banner' qualities. She lived out in the middle of nowhere, alone. She was skinny and science and apparently didn't like people.

"Well there really is only one way to know, and that's to ask her." Clint shrugged and waved his hand to the door. "After you."

...

Bruce glared at Clint for a split second then knocked hesitantly on Alice's door. It wasn't shut properly and opened without much protest.

Inside was cooler than the jungle, the blinds kept the heat out. He stepped over a quaint rug towards the kitchen.

"Alice?" She was standing by the counter, her back to them. "Were you part of genetic testing too?" he asked carefully. If whatever happened to her made her touchy around people, he wasn't going to crowd her.

If she was an ex test subject too, the isolation he had felt for so long would be gone. He wouldn't be the only one.

How many more had Ross and his colleagues lied to? How many bright young minds had been caught in the trap?

"They told us we were helping create a better future, helping people live longer, cure the sort of common diseases we all get," he explained slowly. Maybe if she saw that someone else had been lied to she would tell them what had happened to her. He suddenly wanted to help the small frightened girl, the same person he had been not that long ago.

… …

Alice had kept her back to them as she heard them enter the house behind her.

She felt ashamed; she shouldn't have gotten too close to them, although Agent Barton would have located her home eventually anyway. It was all damned from the start.

"I...I didn't know what I was involved in until it was too late. At first I thought we were doing hypothetical research. But they wanted to do more. We didn't even realize they were using us. Then we got sick, my team and I. I was the only survivor. They changed my genetics, gave me an advantage, sort of. I can, not really by choice sometimes, read peoples thoughts and emotions."

She shook her head and turned to face them. "I can't handle it, my mind...shuts off if it becomes too much. I, become something else. Something a bit more driven." She shook her head. "It's safer for me to be alone. That's why I work out here."

Clint stared, it sounded like someone else he knew. The agent kept his mouth shut though. "Safer how?"

His mind was turning, trying to determine if Alice was more of a threat then he originally thought. She seriously didn't seem dangerous, but now…

"Bruce," He warned, stance tensing. This was supposed to be a training mission; they weren't armed for a fight, if it came to that. Hell, his leg was still messed up.

"Go. It'll be safer for you if you go," Alice agreed sadly, her eyes dropping off to the side.

...

Bruce shook his head, ignoring Clint's warning.

Alice could read minds, she knew what he was. How could he walk away from someone so like himself?

"What would we be safe from?"

It seemed an odd thing to say to ask, if she knew what he was. He knew what a 'something else' was. His had a name and liked smashing things. Cautiously he took a step towards her, leaving Clint's side.

"If you can read our minds then you know what the other guy, the Hulk, is. I'm probably the only person alive who's pretty much safe from anything the testing did to you." How could he help her, what could he say? He knew exactly what she must feel like, shutting herself away from the world. But he didn't know her; he had no right to say anything else. He also had Clint to think of, the archer would be in danger from both of them.

… …

Alice stared back at Bruce. It was true; the Hulk would kill her before she could harm Banner. She glanced at his companion. Alice had observed his injury, she knew he was wounded somehow, but he was skilled. He could kill her before she caused too much damage. Slightly she relaxed.

"You, you're right." She agreed.

She took a breath and let it out slow. "I…they…It's like I can't handle it. The emotion, the voices." She waved a hand towards her head. "I turn off, and something else turns on. I don't remember much of it. I wake up eventually, usually after..."

Clint's eyes narrowed. "After what?"

"After the other voices are gone."

Her eyes had fallen to the floor again. "Dead. She. . .she's a scientist, like me. Just more, driven." Alice repeated. "She has no morals. Well, as far as I can tell."

She shook her head. "I don't want to put you in danger."

"Well that's good, I don't want to be in danger," answered Clint. "Bruce," he said a bit more forcefully. "We really should go. We don't want to stress Alice out any further."

Bruce didn't budge. What Alice was describing was so similar to him. Waking up from something you can hardly remember having done damage you would never dream of doing.

Stress her out.

Clint's choice of words sparked the first signs of anger in him. The way he said it, he hadn't just meant Alice. Clint wanted to go before either of them did something unpredictable.

"Right. I'm sorry. I, there's just no one else like... never mind."

Slowly he let Clint lead him away. If being around people was something Alice couldn't do, he understood. People weren't his favourite companions either.

There was no one else, no one like him except for her. She had said her team was dead. He didn't want to leave, but if he had been her he would have wanted them to.

"I'm sorry," he said again. Sorry that this had happened to her, sorry he had intruded and sorry he couldn't see a way to help.

He left the cabin without another word.

… …

Alice dropped her eyes, which were quickly filling with tears as the boys left her alone. It was what she wanted, but still, she never wanted to be alone. She never wanted this to happen to her, or anyone else. Life, in her experience, was not fair. Once the door clicked closed Alice let her body slide down the wall until she was sitting on the floor in the next to the counter.

"It's not your fault." She whispered, even though she was alone. Wrapping her arms around her knees Alice buried her face against them and cried.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Clint glanced back at Bruce as they walked back to camp.

"Look, I'm sorry. But she said it herself, she's dangerous."

Granted, it was obvious that the Hulk would protect Bruce, but still. Why take the risk? Clint worried that someday Bruce wouldn't have the Hulk to fall back on, and the man would be vulnerable.

No, stop, Clint told himself sharply, eyes narrowing. Friends thought about each other like that. And Bruce and he were only teammates.

"Look, I'm sorry. But we have a mission to complete here." Clint told Bruce calmly. "Let's eat and we'll move on to the next phase Fury outlined for us."

… …

Something snapped in Bruce. He stopped walking.

"Is that all this is, a mission? You don't get it, do you? There's someone else, I-" he began to raise his voice but stopped himself before he got really angry. Stepping away he lifted a hand to his forehead.

"I'm sorry, Clint. What Alice was describing, that's me and I can't walk away from that. I can't ignore the only other person I've met who may have some idea of what this is like. If I can help her, if I can do something then I have to."

He sighed. His thoughts didn't really make sense, even in his head.

"You're right. Let's go back. It's hard, as always." The last bit came out as a whisper not intended for Clint's ears. It was easier to give in than to get angry.

… …

Clint turned to watch Bruce's dilemma, he felt for the man, he did. But Clint's job was to protect Bruce, and Alice, weather the scientist wanted to admit it or not, was a threat.

The agent opened his mouth to tell Bruce he understood, but hesitated, knowing that Bruce didn't want him to be his friend. It was hard, but Clint nodded. "I'm sorry too, but we don't have the protection right now. I'm not sure if I can protect you from her if she, changes." He sighed. "Or whatever." He was alone. Bruce was letting his heart get in the way of his head. "Look, I get that you want to help her. But how? We can't do this alone. Maybe after we get back to SHEILD we can figure something out. But right now we're too exposed."

Or maybe that wasn't even the problem. Clint wasn't sure. He was unsure of a lot of things these days. Perhaps he should attempt to sleep like a normal human being.

They arrived back at camp and Clint immediately went to his bow and riffled through his bag. Pulling out a gun he turned and handed it to Bruce.

"Just to be safe." He said.

… …

Bruce took the gun and immediately put it on the floor. He didn't know what was running through Clint's head, maybe the archer thought he was going to use that on Alice.

"Fury doesn't need to know," he said firmly. "She's not hurting anyone out here and there's nothing SHIELD can do. If you're not going to let me find a way to get through to her then at least leave her alone." He stopped before he got carried away. It was too similar to what he had wanted for himself.

"Let's just complete this list you've got, you're too stuck on doing it." Bruce began setting up the fire again. "Who knows, maybe Fury will give you a gold star for putting up with me for a week."

… …

Clint rolled his eyes and stood to face Bruce. "I'm not going to go out of my way to hurt the girl. I honestly don't care as long as she doesn't endanger you." Barton snapped. Forcefully Clint took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"I don't give a damn about Fury, but I have orders and I intend on following them." With a glare Clint stalked forward towards the doctor. "One of us has to make sure you stay alive, doctor."

Passing by the man, Clint moved over to the river and splashed some cool water on his face. Everything he did for Bruce seemed to be wrong in the man's eyes. Clint was trying to protect the man, not that Banner seemed to care. The man had no sense of self preservation. It was infuriating.

The archer stood and glanced back to Bruce. Clint went over the list in his head and tried to think of what he needed to teach the scientist next. Honestly, with the exception of needing to practice more hand to hand combat they were done early. Bruce was exceptional at surviving in the woods. And what he couldn't do, the Hulk could.

"Let's call it a day, I'm going to go hunt. Stay put." Clint said, voice void of emotion as he grabbed his bow and quiver.

… …

Bruce watched Clint as he disappeared into the jungle. He wanted to go back to the cabin but he stayed put. However pointless it was, the archer only wanted to protect him and Bruce wasn't going to cause him any more pain.

Bruce didn't need protecting. He would never be in mortal danger. However, just because he didn't need protecting didn't mean he didn't appreciate it. No one else, apart from the suicidal archer, would want to protect him.

It was that thought that made him stay put instead of going back to Alice's cabin. As much as he thought Clint was wrong, he wasn't going to make him worry.

Bruce sighed and began to look around for some sort of peace offering. He recognized enough plants to begin putting together some herbal tea. Clint liked tea, right?

… …

Clint took his time hunting. He was fairly certain Banner would stay put. The man wasn't Tony Stark in any way shape or form. Still, Barton knew he should go back, talk it over, figure out a plan to help Bruce help Alice. Something they both were comfortable with. Once he was calmed down Clint started to head back to camp, mostly because his leg was more than exhausted from the rough treatment the day had brought.

Stumbling, Clint cursed himself and fell to his knees, pain blooming on his hand as he brushed against a plant with tiny thorns. They pierced through and broke off under his skin. It burned. If he had been sleeping more than a few minutes at a time and wasn't preoccupied, maybe he'd have caught himself better, but that wasn't the case.

Wincing, Clint held his hand up to his eyes for closer examination. There were at least twelve thorns embedded deeply into his skin. The rest, about ten, were easily pulled out. When he got back to camp he'd have to get the med kit and pull the others out. The last thing they needed was for his hand to get infected out in the middle of freaking nowhere with no way to communicate with SHIELD.

Shaking his head, Clint pulled himself back up to his feet and moved a bit more carefully through the jungle. By the time he got back to camp he was drenched in sweat, which honestly wasn't necessarily normal, even though it was boiling in the jungle. He hadn't exerted himself that much. Swiping at his forehead Clint moved over to their packs and shuffled through the contents until he pulled out a first aid kit.

Setting down his bow and quiver Clint glanced up and at Bruce for the first time since returning, pleased to see that the Doctor had stayed put.

"Didn't catch anything," He announced. "Hope you don't mind eating fish again." He sighed as he pulled out the tweezers from the kit and sat down to take care of his hand.

… …

Bruce raised his head and frowned at Clint in concern.

"Are you alright? What did you do to your hand?" He couldn't help but reach out to take the archer's hand and begin treating it.

"Whoa, those blisters aren't normal. How are you feeling?"8 Large swellings had already appeared on Clint's hand around the thorns. Bruce took the tweezers and had them all out in seconds. The water he had been boiling for tea he used to wash the cuts out. It took him a moment to hunt for a bandage.

Clint appeared to be having an allergic reaction of some kind, if the sweat was anything to go by. Bruce had never asked if his teammate had any allergies and he wasn't sure if they had an adrenaline injection in the first aid kit.

He was genuinely scared now, worried about what the strange plant had done to his friend.

… …

Clint blinked and Bruce had taken over his care, which was probably for the best as the archer's vision was slightly fogged.

It took Barton a bit longer to process the doctor's words than normal, also not a good sign.

"Um, fell into some sort of thorny plant."

Clint shook his head for some clarity, but it only made him dizzy. "Burns like crazy." He winced as Bruce pulled out the turns. The blisters were new and a bit disturbing.

"I feel off." Clint admitted, which was saying something. He felt like lying down and sleeping, which was something he had been carefully avoiding.

"Maybe just need to rest a bit."9 Clint winced again, trying to stand. But the world wouldn't stop moving. He swayed dangerously, eyes rolling a bit before he closed them to fend off the tilting feeling.

"Freaking plant." Clint groaned, bandaged hand brushing his aching forehead.

… …

Bruce held on to Clint's shoulders as the archer stumbled back. Carefully he lowered his friend to the floor.

"Look, I know you don't trust her but Alice works with these plants. She would know what the reaction is, alright?"

He didn't want to make Clint angry by suggesting going back, nor did he have an ulterior motive. If Alice knew what the plant was then she would know how to stop Clint's worrying bout of illness.

Bruce slung one of the archer's arms around his shoulders and heaved him to his feet.

"Come on, whatever the danger, you've got the other guy looking out for you, remember? He's not going to be happy if I let you get hurt by something as small as a plant."

Bruce struggled to keep Clint from falling over as he half dragged the man through the jungle, carefully avoiding any snagging plants. Once again he cursed the several pounds of muscle the guy had on him.

… …

Clint groaned out his answer, eyes still closed as he allowed Bruce to manhandle him through the jungle the mile to Alice's cabin. His mind was fuzzy and his thought process was not exactly clear. As in, not clear enough to realize he was being brought to the most dangerous person in the area.

**Thank you so much all those who reviewed and poked us into uploading again, we're sorry it took so long.**


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